iambus

American  

[ahy-am-buhs] / aɪˈæm bəs /

noun

iambi, plural iambuses plural

1. iamb.

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Etymology

Origin of iambus

1580–90; < Latin < Greek íambos

Example Sentences

For the sake of convenience the accented syllables are indicated thus: _, and the unaccented syllables thus: U. An iambus is a foot consisting of two syllables with the accent on the last.

From Composition-Rhetoric by Brooks, Stratton D.

Archilochus made use of the iambus and the trochee, and organized them into the two forms of metre known as the iambic trimeter and the trochaic tetrameter.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 4 "Aram, Eugene" to "Arcueil" by Various

The foot consisting of an unaccented followed by an accented syllable is called an iambus.

From Elementary Guide to Literary Criticism by Painter, F. V. N. (Franklin Verzelius Newton)

There can be no very general agreement among readers as to the degree of accent necessary to change a pair of syllables from an "iambus" to a "pyrrhic" or a "spondee."

From English Verse Specimens Illustrating its Principles and History by Alden, Raymond MacDonald

It will, no doubt, be considered ridiculous by the Fannii and Fanniae of our day to talk of varying the trochee with the iambus, or of resolving either into the tribrach.

From Famous Reviews by Johnson, R. Brimley